Overview
What are voice problems?
Voice problems usually include pain or discomfort when you speak or difficulty controlling the pitch, loudness, or quality of your voice.
As you exhale, air gently passes through your throat, across your open vocal cords, and out your mouth and nose. When you speak, your vocal cords close partially as air travels through them, causing vibrations and the unique sound of your voice. Your voice is the result of remarkable and complex interactions involving several body parts—especially the lungs, voice box (larynx), and mouth. Damage to any of these body parts can lead to a voice problem.
What causes voice problems?
While anyone can develop a voice problem, your risk is greatest if your job puts a high demand on your vocal cords. For example, singers, preachers, and teachers have high-risk jobs. Aging also strains the vocal cords. If you scream or talk loudly, you increase your risk for voice problems. If you have ever had surgery on or near your vocal cords, are a smoker, or have had throat cancer, your risk for developing scar tissue and future voice problems increases as well.
What are the symptoms?
Generally, symptoms that indicate you may have a voice problem include:
- A low, raspy, or rough voice.
- Hoarseness that continues for more than 2 or 3 weeks.
- Trouble swallowing or breathing, especially if you also have ear pain.
- Coughing or choking when you swallow.
- Frequent throat clearing or the sensation that you have a lump in your throat.
How are voice problems diagnosed?
Your doctor can usually diagnose a voice problem using information from a medical history and by performing a physical exam. Additional tests may be given to evaluate vocal cord vibration or to detect suspicious areas in your throat. Additional testing doesn't necessarily mean you have a serious voice problem—it just helps your doctor pinpoint the cause of your voice problem.
How are they treated?
For many voice problems, resting your vocal cords is all that is needed, although this can be difficult for some people. If you have a more serious or chronic voice problem, you may need medicines, surgery, voice therapy, or a combination of these. Treatment frequently succeeds in restoring the voice to normal. But it may take some time for your voice to return to normal, depending on the severity and cause of your voice problem.
Is your voice change serious?
You might be one of those people who gets laryngitis every time you get the common cold—this is temporary and usually not serious. If your voice problem is accompanied by a cold and goes away within 2 to 3 weeks after your cold or flu is gone, it's probably nothing serious. If you feel concerned, you may wish to see your doctor just to make sure.
But when unexplained changes in your voice continue for more than 2 or 3 weeks or interfere with your ability to communicate, you may have a more serious problem. For some people, the changes might get better but then reappear. If you notice a change in your voice, it's worth making an appointment with your doctor for further evaluation.
If your voice problems get better but then come back, it's worth making an appointment with your doctor for further evaluation.
Latest Information About Voice Problems
The following online resources provide the latest information on voice problems.
Voiceproblem.org offers current, extensive information on various voice problems, written by a group of expert voice surgeons from the United States. The site provides information on anatomy and physiology of voice production, how voice problems are diagnosed and treated, and ways to prevent them. The site includes a quiz regarding your voice symptoms. Based on your answers, you will be given information about the types of voice problems that fit your symptoms and whether you need to see a health professional for diagnosis and treatment. (The quiz is not intended to diagnose your voice problem.) You will also be given information on the types of health professionals who treat voice problems and how to find a provider in your area. You can find information at www.voiceproblem.org.
The voice problems covered at this site include:
- Laryngitis.
- Laryngeal atypia and early cancer.
- Laryngeal advanced cancer.
- Reflux laryngitis.
- Reinke's edema.
- Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis spasmodic dysphonia.
- Spasmodic dysphonia.
- Vocal fold granuloma.
- Vocal fold paresis/paralysis.
- Vocal fold scarring.
- Vocal fold lesions.
- Voice dysfunction in neurological disorders.
- Pediatric voice disorders.
Voice Academy was created to assist teachers who use their speaking voices daily by providing self-paced instruction on vocal health strategies. The site includes 10 virtual classrooms that explain how to manage your voice and avoid voice problems. It is not designed to diagnose voice problems. The site was created in cooperation with the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communicable Disorders. You may obtain information on the types of health professionals who treat voice problems and how to find the name of a provider in your area. You can find information at www.voiceacademy.org.
References
Other Works Consulted
Buckmire R (2005). Hoarseness and laryngitis. In HF Conn et al., eds., Conn's Current Therapy, pp. 240–243. Philadelphia: Saunders.
Dambro MR (2006). Algorithms. In Griffith's 5-Minute Clinical Consult, p. 1351. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
Dambro MR (2006). Laryngitis. In Griffith's 5-Minute Clinical Consult, pp. 626–627. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
Jackler RK, Kaplan MJ (2005). Ear, nose, and throat. In LM Tierney Jr et al., eds., Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment, 44th ed., pp. 207–209. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Credits
| Author | Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS |
| Editor | Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA |
| Associate Editor | Michele Cronen |
| Associate Editor | Pat Truman |
| Primary Medical Reviewer | Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine |
| Last Updated | August 7, 2007 |
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